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Kesteven & Sleaford High School 11 plus guide

By Atom | Jun 20, 2023, 4:10 PM

Kesteven and Sleaford High School, Lincolnshire

Are you thinking about registering your child for a place at Kesteven and Sleaford High School? We've collated everything you need to know about applying for Year 7 entry in 2024, including the content of the 11 plus exam and how to help your child prepare.

About Kesteven and Sleaford High School

Kesteven and Sleaford High School (KSHS) is a girls’ grammar school (with co-educational sixth form) located in the small market town of Sleaford, Lincolnshire. The school is a member of the Robert Carre Trust, along with Carre’s Grammar School and Sleaford Joint Sixth Form.

Ofsted reported that a key strength of the school is the way that school improvement is seen as everyone’s responsibility. Staff feel empowered and hold each other accountable for pupils’ achievement, with parents and pupils commenting on a strong sense of community and belonging within the school and the Robert Carre Trust.

  • Address: Kesteven and Sleaford High School, Jermyn Street, Sleaford, Lincolnshire, NG34 7RS

  • Local authority: Lincolnshire County Council

  • School type: girls' grammar with mixed sixth form

  • Headteacher: Josephine Smith

  • Number of pupils: 750+

  • National rank (Sunday Times Parent Power): 153

  • A level results: 77.9% A*–B

  • GCSE results: 52.7% A*/A/9/8/7

Year 7 admissions: key info

  • Admissions contact: Mrs Yvette Edwards – [email protected], 01529 414044

  • Number of places in Year 7: 124

  • Open day date: Tuesday 4th July, Wednesday 5th July and Wednesday 18th October 2023

  • 11 plus registration opens: January 2023

  • 11 plus registration closes: 31st March 2023

  • Exam date: 16th and 23rd September 2023

  • Exam type: Lincolnshire Consortium of Grammar Schools: GL Assessment

  • Common application form (CAF) deadline: 31st October 2023

  • National school offer day: 1st March 2024

Kesteven and Sleaford High School term dates

The term dates at Kesteven and Sleaford High School in 2023–2024 are:

  • Autumn term: 5th September – 20th December 2023

  • Half term: 20th–30th October 2023

  • Spring term: 3rd January – 27th March 2024

  • Half term: 12th–16th February 2024

  • Summer term: 15th April – 19th July 2024

  • Half term: 27th–31st May 2024

The term dates at Kesteven and Sleaford High School in 2024–2025 are:

  • Autumn term: 3rd September – 20th December 2024

  • Half term: 18th–27th October 2024

  • Spring term: 7th January – 3rd April 2025

  • Half term: 17th–21st February 2025

  • Summer term: 22nd April – 22nd July 2025

  • Half term: 26th–30th May 2025

How to apply to Kesteven and Sleaford High School

If you would like your daughter to be considered for a place at Kesteven and Sleaford High School, you will need to register for them to take the 11 plus exam and apply for a school place separately:

  • Register for the 11 plus: you will need to register for your child to take the Lincolnshire 11 plus exam via Kesteven and Sleaford High School's website. The deadline for this is 31st March 2023.

  • Apply for a school place: you will need to submit your local authority common application form (CAF) and name Kesteven and Sleaford School as your preferred school of choice. If you're applying from within Lincolnshire, you will be able to complete this form on the Lincolnshire County Council website between 1st September and 31st October 2023.

The 11 plus at Kesteven and Sleaford High School

The 11 plus exam for entry to Kesteven and Sleaford High School is spread out over two dates in September. 15 of the grammar schools in Lincolnshire take the same exam, so your child will only need to take these papers once if they're applying to more than one grammar school in the area. Both exams are taken on the school site on the following dates:

  • Verbal reasoning: Saturday 16th September 2023

  • Non-verbal/spatial reasoning: Saturday 23rd September 2023

Both tests are multiple-choice. If your child attends one of the 34 primary schools local to Kesteven and Sleaford School, they will receive practice papers via their primary school in June 2023.

Find out more about the content of the exam in our guide to the Lincolnshire 11 plus and access free resources to help your child prepare.

Lincolnshire 11 plus guide

What is the pass mark for Kesteven and Sleaford High School?

After your child takes the 11 plus exam, a team of independent professional markers will double-mark and check the papers. Some scores will be age-standardised and then the results for the school will be ranked in order.

The qualifying level (pass mark) is a total standardised score of at least 220 on both papers. Children who meet and exceed this pass mark are normally working within the top 25% of their cohort.

The results of the exam will be emailed to you on Friday 13th October 2023. However, passing the 11 plus does not guarantee that your child will receive a place at the school, as more children normally qualify for a place than there are places available. See more information about this below.

Kesteven and Sleaford High School oversubscription criteria

There are 124 places available in Year 7 at Kesteven and Sleaford High School. If the number of children who meet the qualifying score exceeds 124, the school will apply oversubscription criteria to decide which children should be offered places. Children who have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) which names the school, and who have met the qualifying score, will be prioritised before the remaining oversubscription criteria are applied:

  1. Any child who is, or has been in the past, in the care of the local authority (also known as a Looked After or previously Looked After child)

  2. Any child who is registered for Pupil Premium or Free School Meals

  3. Children who have siblings at one of the schools within the Robert Carre Trust

  4. Children living closest to the school (measured by a straight line between the child's primary home and the school address)

Local primary schools to Kesteven and Sleaford High School

34 primary schools near Kesteven and Sleaford High School are feeder schools. If your child attends one of these primary schools, they will automatically receive information about the 11 plus in the area, including familiarisation papers, in June when they're in Year 5.

  • Ancaster CofE Primary

  • Bassingham Primary

  • Billingborough Primary

  • Billinghay CofE Primary

  • Brant Broughton CE & Methodist School

  • Caythorpe Primary

  • Claypole CofE Primary

  • Cranwell Primary

  • Digby CofE Primary

  • Digby, The Tedder Primary

  • Dunston St Peters

  • Heckington St Andrews CofE Primary

  • Helpringham Primary

  • Horbling Browns CofE Primary

  • Kirkby la Thorpe CofE Primary Academy

  • Leadenham CE Primary

  • Leasingham St Andrew's CofE Primary

  • Martin, Mrs Mary Kings

  • Metheringham Primary

  • Navenby CofE Primary

  • Nocton Community Primary

  • Osbournby Primary

  • Pointon, St Gilbert of Sempringham CofE Primary

  • Potterhanworth C of E Primary School

  • Rauceby C of E Primary School

  • Ruskington, Chestnut Street

  • Ruskington, Winchelsea Primary

  • Sleaford, Church Lane Primary

  • Sleaford, Our Lady of Good Counsel

  • Sleaford, St Botolph’s CofE Primary

  • Sleaford, William Alvey CofE Primary

  • Walcott Primary

  • Welbourn CofE Primary

  • Witham St Hughs Academy

How to help your child prepare for the 11 plus

Here are our top tips on how to best prepare your child for the Lincolnshire 11 plus.

Cover all the content

The Lincolnshire 11 plus assesses a variety of skills in verbal and non-verbal reasoning. Neither of these subjects is taught on the school curriculum.

We recommend that your child starts revising content at least one year before the test. Setting aside study periods using a 'little and often' approach will give them time to build the skills and knowledge they need. When preparing, avoid falling into the trap of over-focusing on either the topics your child enjoys or the topics they find hardest.

Atom Home is an adaptive 11 plus online course that tailors your child's personalised learning journey. They'll be able to cover all elements of 11 plus verbal and non-verbal reasoning at the pace that's right for them.

No surprises

Your child will encounter lots of unfamiliar types of verbal and non-verbal reasoning questions in the 11 plus exam. Building exam technique with 11 plus test papers will help your child to feel fully confident with the styles of questions they'll encounter in the exam, reducing the potential for stress on the day.

Celebrate their progress

Setting regular goals and celebrating achievements will help keep motivation high. Atom Home offers data-driven insights into your child’s progress towards mastering the 11 plus curriculum, making it easy to see where they need to focus next.

See how our learning platform works

Try answering some 11+ questions

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Personalised 11 plus prep for your child

Wondering how to make sure your child covers the depth and breadth of the entire 11 plus curriculum, stays on track with their progress, and gets help when they're stuck? Online learning is a particularly efficient, cost-effective (and fun) way to do this!

Atom Home is the award-winning online 11 plus practice platform that gives your child everything they need to prepare for grammar school exams.

Children work independently through over 90,000 interactive practice questions in English, maths and reasoning. Teacher-created helpsheets and videos help them discover new concepts and consolidate their learning.

Atom's algorithm keeps children on their ideal learning path, tailored to their unique learning style and pace to keep them challenged and motivated.

Lincolnshire 11 plus practice papers

Atom Home gives children access to unlimited online practice papers. Our online tests are designed to mirror the format and style of the real Lincolnshire 11 plus, so your child will go into the exam knowing exactly what to expect.

And what's more, everything is automatically marked for you.

Try Atom Home free for 5 days

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Personalised 11 plus support for you

We know how keen you are for your child to do well in the 11 plus, to give them every chance of securing a place at their school of choice. Our dedicated team of Education Experts are on hand to support you and your family every step of the way:

Ask us anything

We're happy to help with any questions you may have about admissions processes and helping your child prepare for entry to Lincolnshire grammar schools.

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